July 18, 2013

Manchin Statement on Gina McCarthy ‘No’ Vote

Senator Manchin voted against Gina McCarthy’s nomination to become the next Administrator of the EPA

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) today issued the following statement after voting against President Obama’s nominee to be the next Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Gina McCarthy.

“I voted against Gina McCarthy to be the next Administrator of the EPA, but my fight is not with her. My fight is with President Obama and the EPA, the regulatory agency that has consistently placed unreasonable regulations and unobtainable standards on energy production, rather than focus on efforts to develop a domestic all-of-the-above energy strategy for the future.

“I recently met with Ms. McCarthy and I found her to be earnest, friendly, pragmatic and incredibly intelligent. She is a talented scientist who has dedicated her life to public service, serving under Democrats and Republicans alike. However, in her current position as EPA Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation, she has been responsible for overseeing some of EPA’s most unreasonable and restrictive proposals. Because of this, I do not believe she is the leader who we are looking for to make this all-of-the-above plan a reality.

“We must develop a national energy policy that uses all of our vast resources — coal, gas, oil, as well as wind, hydro, solar, biomass and nuclear. We must invest in technologies that will allow us to use our resources in the cleanest and most efficient ways possible. We must break the power of foreign oil countries and greedy speculators. By doing this, we will chart a new and promising energy future for this great nation, increasing both our national security and prosperity.

“With that being said, the Senate has passed her nomination by a vote of 59-40, so I am committed to working with Ms. McCarthy to make sure we invest in domestic energy policies that will secure American jobs and continue to grow our economy.” 

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